D-League success paves the way for bigger and better careers

Say what you want about the D-League, but there’s no denying its success as a launching pad for a better career.

Players enter the minor league with dreams of grandeur: Larger paydays, more exposure and, ultimately, a guaranteed roster spot in the NBA. While not everyone makes the permanent jump to The Association, that elusive call-up is not the be-all, end-all for most players.

You think the season ended for D-League players after the Santa Cruz Warriors hoisted the 2014-15 championship? Wrong.

Many players who were called-up by NBA clubs ended up heading overseas almost immediately following the D-League season. Some remained poised and ready for any opportunity, but most, quite honestly, flocked for the money.

For the likes of Jarrid Famous, who is biding his time for an opportunity in the NBA after a successful rookie season with the Legends, it turned out to be a pretty good decision.

It’s well chronicled that D-League salaries are not spectacular and while that may be true (for the time being at least), the exposure is invaluable.

At the end of the season, coaches from around the league vote on awards, like MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. In 2013-14, 35 different players earned individual awards or made an All-NBADL, All-Defense or All-Rookie team. Eight of those players ended the season on an NBA roster (roughly 23 percent) and two others (Seth Curry and Patrick Christopher) were on an NBA roster at one point during the season.

Beyond that, every player who made an All-NBADL team (15 in total) spent some part of the season with an NBA or international team. In both situations, you can bet they had a larger payday and more exposure — two of the three boxes for most players’ dreams of grandeur.

In 2014-15, 34 different players earned awards based on the votes from coaches around the league, 12 of whom finished their season with an NBA club (roughly 35 percent). While that leaves 22 unclaimed, rest assured knowing they are currently weighing options from multiple teams. For the likes of Willie Reed, Shawn Jones and C.J. Fair, they’ll be donning NBA uniforms during Summer League.

We’re still a month removed from summer hoops, leaving ample time for the number of D-League participants to rise even further. Last year, 130 D-League alums took to Las Vegas to strut their stuff in front of executives, giving them the opportunity to work their way into a greater situation. There’s no doubt that a similar number of players will be looking to follow suit this year.

Talk to any player in the D-League — even the ones who don’t play much — and they will mention the NBA. It’s what drives them, what keeps them going when they aren’t getting the playing time they want, when the shots aren’t falling, when their families have to stream their games on YouTube instead of watching on TV. However, those same players ultimately want to make a living playing the game they love.

While the D-League still has plenty of room to grow, its developed into the perfect platform to turn that dream into a reality.